Our group used this assignment to revamp the seventh grade cross-curriculum Rocket Day.
Curriculum Standards
English/Language Arts
Common Core State Standards for ELA
7.RL.1-Cite textual evidence to support what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
7.RL.2-Determine the central theme of a text.
7.RI.4-Determine figurative language and technical meanings.
W.7.3-Write imagined experiences using effective technique.
Science
Common Core State Standards for Science Content
7.P.1.1-Explain how the motion of an object can be described by its position, direction of motion, and speed with respect to some other object.
7.P.1.4-Interpret distance versus time graphs for constant speed and variable motion.
Social Studies
Reading Standards in Literacy for History/Social Studies 6-12
2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
8. Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.
Math
Common Core State Standards for Mathematical Content
7.NS.2 - Apply and extend previous understandings of multiplication and division and of fractions to multiply and divide rational numbers.
7.NS.3 Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving the four operations with rational numbers.
Common Core State Standards for Mathematical Practice
1 – Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
2 – Reason abstractly and quantitavely.
3 – Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
4 – Model with mathematics.
5 – Use appropriate tools strategically.
6 – Attend to precision.
7 – Look for and make use of structure. 8 – Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.
Objectives
English/Language Arts
To understand elements of poetry such as figurative language, style, tone, mood, purpose, and audience.
To understand the process of creating a poem, paying attention to style, audience, intent, and word choice.
To respond to poetry through writing and discussion.
To participate in a discussion of poetic techniques online (using Edmodo.com)
To identify music that relates to the topic Rocket Day, and seek and identify connections between the music, poetry, and scientific concept of Rocket Day.
To create a poem that uses literary devices and is related to the overarching topic of Rocket Day.
Science
To understand an objects motion can be described by its position, direction, and its speed.
To understand the effects of balanced and unbalance forces.
To create and interpret graphs to show changes in position, time,speed and variable motion.
To see how motion behaves according to laws.
Social Studies
To understand the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in text.
To determine which statements are facts and opinions.
To determine the central idea of a selection and support it with textual evidence.
Math
To understand how to determine an objects center of gravity.
To understand how to permit a rocket to fly stable by utilizing its center of pressure.
To connect understanding of center of gravity to human’s center of mass.
Learning Activities
English/Language Arts
Students will:
View The Astronaut's Playlist and choose a song that they feel corresponds best to ideas related to space, discovery, and rockets.
Write a paragraph that explains that correspondence and post the paragraph to Edmodo.
Write a ten-line poem that uses five literary devices such as metaphor, simile, alliteration, end rhyme, allusion, etc.
Create an Animoto video that uses all ten lines of their poem, using corresponding pictures and music.
Upload the link to their video to Edmodo for other students to see.
Respond to another classmate's video on Edmodo.
Science
Students will:
Use the scientific method to research, design, and build a rocket based on their knowledge of how to calculate speed, position, velocity, acceleration, and direction.
Apply scientific measurements to predict the trajectory of moving objects in reference to their position.
Launch a rocket and record its flight time.
Graph distance versus time, change in position, constant speed and variable motion.
Video the process of designing the rockets, launching the rocket, and discussing their participation roles.
Present and post their video on the Edmodo class page.
Social Studies
Students will:
Read the online article "Will the New Mars Rover Save the U.S. Space Program" bookmarked and shared on Diigo by their instructor.
Use digital sticky notes to define in context the words that have been highlighted in blue by the instructor.
Use digital sticky notes to explain why the sentences highlighted in yellow are facts or opinions.
Use a digital sticky note to write the central idea of the text and highlight in green, support for the central ideal.
Share with their group, the sticky notes they have posted to the online text.
Post their central idea with support on the class Edmodo page and respond to two other classmates' posts.
Discuss their finding with the class.
Math
Students will:
Demonstrate the human bodies center of mass.
Create a simple balance.
Use the simple balance to determine the center of gravity of a meter stick without any additional mass and again with additional mass.
Use a formula to calculate the center of gravity of an object mathematically. (Replace variables with values and then follow the correct order of operations to determine the center of gravity.)
Determine the center of lateral area of a cardboard cut-out of a bottle rocket.
Determine the placement of fins based on center of pressure and center of gravity.
Write a summary of their knowledge of center of gravity and center of pressure.
Create a Voki character voicing their written summary.
Upload the link to their Voki character to Edmodo for other students to view.
Integration of App/Tool
English/Language Arts
The tool used in ELA was Animoto. This tool is integrated to give a visual demonstration of the poems students create for Rocket Day. The students will first visit The Astronaut's Playlist to see how poetry has been created to delineate ideas about space, rockets, and discovery. Students will be asked to note how space may be used as a symbol for something, such as a loss of feeling, or lack of connectedness. After responding to a post on Edmodo, students will begin to write their own poems, utilizing their knowledge of figurative language, and connecting them to themes of outer space, rockets, discovery, and so on. They will present their poems through Animoto, using pictures from online, or personal pictures, to give a visual demonstration of the lines in their poetry. The pictures must relate to the theme, tone, figurative language, and imagery in their poems. When students have created their videos in Animoto, they will post the link on Edmodo.
Note: Students will be expected to use images that are not copyright protected. If students use images from sites such as Flickr, they are responsible for visiting the creative commons, making sure that usage will not violate copyright laws.
Science
The tool being used in Science was the Toshiba Camileo BW20 Digital Camcorder. Students videoed their groups through the stages of building their rockets. They also videoed their launches. After collecting their footage, students uploaded their videos to YouTube. Each group was required to past their video's URL to Edmodo so others where could view their presentations. The final part of the unit was presenting their projects using the video they had created.
Social Studies
The tool being used in social studies is Diigo. The instructor will annotate the article with digital highlighting and share it with the groups created within each class. Each group will complete the assignment on Diigo by using digital sticky notes and highlighting. They will determine the meaning of words in context, analyze and explain why sentences may be fact or opinions, and determine and support the central idea of the text. This ties in with goals that students are working on in their ELA classes. Each group will save and share their work with the whole class through Diigo. After completing this assignment, students will post their central idea with support on Edmodo and respond to two other student's posts.
Math
The tool used in Math is Voki. The instructor will have previously demonstrated how to use Voki to create a character. The instructor will present the definitions of center of gravity, center of lateral area, and center of pressure. These definitions will provide students with the understanding of best placement of weight (fins) on their bottle rocket. The instructor will use student volunteers to test their center of mass. Students will be working in small groups and will participate in the activities to demonstrate how to determine an objects center of gravity mathematically and through measurement. Students will write a summary of their understanding of center of gravity and center of pressure. Using their summary, students will create a Voki character that they will share with their class through Edmodo. Students will be asked to respond to two of their classmates posts.
Collaboration
English/Language Arts
Students will post responses to the songs from The Astronaut's Playlist, and respond to another student's post. Students will also write a response to another student's Animoto video. It is imperative that they use this collaborative approach to expand their own thinking regarding their videos and poems.
Science
Students will work in groups to research, design, and build their rockets. Each group member must actively be involved in the construction of the project and must identify their contribution in the groups video presentation.
Social Studies
Students will work with a partner on the assignment and share their work with the whole class on Diigo. They will each individually post their central idea to the Edmodo class page and respond to two other classmate's posts with constructive feedback.
Math
Students will work in groups (preferably the groups that built the rocket) and will share their work with the class through Edmodo. They will post individually and will respond to two other classmate posts with constructive comments.
ISTE NETS-T
Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Model Digital Age Work and Learning
Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
Assessment
English/Language Arts
The Animoto videos will be the assessment for students. This will be their summative for the Rocket Day collaborative unit. The responses in Edmodo will serve as the formative assessment.
Science
The actual design and construction of the rocket will serve as a formative assessment. The group video presentation posted on Edmodo and will be the summative assessment.
Social Studies
The annotating on Diigo will be the formative assessment. The responses on Edmodo will be the summative assessment.
Math
The participation in the completion of the labs will serve as a formative assessment. The Voki character and responses on Edmodo will serve as a summative assessment.
Materials/Resources
All classes will be using Edmodo for submitting assignments and collaborating with their peers.
Websites:
English/Language Arts
The Astronaut's Playlist
This website will be used as an activating activity. Students will use this website as a chance to peruse songs about space, noting how imagery, themes, and figurative language are used to create lyrics. http://www.space.com/11037-space-music-playlist-astronauts-wakeup.html
Animoto
Students will use Animoto to create their summatives. They will use one line per slide, and include a picture to give effect to their poems. www.animoto.com
Edmodo
Students will use Edmodo to post their responses regarding the song they choose on The Astronaut's Playlist. Their objective is to listen to a song, and note the use of space-related imagery in the song. They will post the song they chose and a 2-3 sentence blurb explaining how the author related the song to space. www.edmodo.com
Mobile computer lab will also be needed.
Science
2 liter bottle. (No other size)
Stiff material for fins. (Cardboard, plastic, foam). No metal please!
Material for the nose cone. (Cardboard, plastic, foam). No metal please!
Parachutes are acceptable for the rocket design.
Duct tape only for the attachment of the rocket pieces.
Digital cameras
Mobile computer lab will be needed for
Social Studies
Students will use Edmodo to post their central ideas and support. http://www.edmodo.com/
Classes/groups need to be set up on http://www.diigo.com/ and practice should be done beforehand with the students on how to use Diigo's features.
Mobile computer lab with Diigo tool bar installed on each computer.
News article on the future of the space program. http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2012/08/07/will-the-new-mars-rover-save-the-u-s-space-program/
The online article needs to be annotated for student use and shared with each student.
A post needs to be set up on Edmodo for students to post their central ideas and support.
Math
Students will use Voki to create a character to express their understanding of the concepts center of gravity and center of pressure.
Students will use Edmodo to post their link to a Voki creaton.
Mobile computer lab will be needed.
Meter Stick
Soda pop bottle (1 liter) (include a nose cone and fins)
It is the intent of this unit for students to make a connection to all of the content areas. In their future careers, we hope students will understand the interconnectedness of content, noting how many jobs require a knowledge base that extends beyond a single subject. These jobs, especially those in the 21st Century, will require an understanding of physical and social science as well as literacy and mathematics. 21st Century jobs will demand that students have strong interpersonal skills. As they work collaboratively during the unit and respond to other students posts on Edmodo, students will build creative, communicative, and collaborative skills.
Our group used this assignment to revamp the seventh grade cross-curriculum Rocket Day.
Curriculum Standards
English/Language Arts
Common Core State Standards for ELA7.RL.1-Cite textual evidence to support what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
7.RL.2-Determine the central theme of a text.
7.RI.4-Determine figurative language and technical meanings.
W.7.3-Write imagined experiences using effective technique.
Science
Common Core State Standards for Science Content7.P.1.1-Explain how the motion of an object can be described by its position, direction of motion, and speed with respect to some other object.
7.P.1.4-Interpret distance versus time graphs for constant speed and variable motion.
Social Studies
Reading Standards in Literacy for History/Social Studies 6-122. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
8. Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.
Math
Common Core State Standards for Mathematical Content7.NS.2 - Apply and extend previous understandings of multiplication and division and of fractions to multiply and divide rational numbers.
7.NS.3 Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving the four operations with rational numbers.
Common Core State Standards for Mathematical Practice
1 – Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
2 – Reason abstractly and quantitavely.
3 – Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
4 – Model with mathematics.
5 – Use appropriate tools strategically.
6 – Attend to precision.
7 – Look for and make use of structure.
8 – Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.
Objectives
English/Language Arts
Science
Social Studies
Math
Learning Activities
English/Language Arts
Students will:Science
Students will:Social Studies
Students will:Math
Students will:Integration of App/Tool
English/Language Arts
The tool used in ELA was Animoto. This tool is integrated to give a visual demonstration of the poems students create for Rocket Day. The students will first visit The Astronaut's Playlist to see how poetry has been created to delineate ideas about space, rockets, and discovery. Students will be asked to note how space may be used as a symbol for something, such as a loss of feeling, or lack of connectedness. After responding to a post on Edmodo, students will begin to write their own poems, utilizing their knowledge of figurative language, and connecting them to themes of outer space, rockets, discovery, and so on. They will present their poems through Animoto, using pictures from online, or personal pictures, to give a visual demonstration of the lines in their poetry. The pictures must relate to the theme, tone, figurative language, and imagery in their poems. When students have created their videos in Animoto, they will post the link on Edmodo.Note: Students will be expected to use images that are not copyright protected. If students use images from sites such as Flickr, they are responsible for visiting the creative commons, making sure that usage will not violate copyright laws.
Science
The tool being used in Science was the Toshiba Camileo BW20 Digital Camcorder. Students videoed their groups through the stages of building their rockets. They also videoed their launches. After collecting their footage, students uploaded their videos to YouTube. Each group was required to past their video's URL to Edmodo so others where could view their presentations. The final part of the unit was presenting their projects using the video they had created.Social Studies
The tool being used in social studies is Diigo. The instructor will annotate the article with digital highlighting and share it with the groups created within each class. Each group will complete the assignment on Diigo by using digital sticky notes and highlighting. They will determine the meaning of words in context, analyze and explain why sentences may be fact or opinions, and determine and support the central idea of the text. This ties in with goals that students are working on in their ELA classes. Each group will save and share their work with the whole class through Diigo. After completing this assignment, students will post their central idea with support on Edmodo and respond to two other student's posts.Math
The tool used in Math is Voki. The instructor will have previously demonstrated how to use Voki to create a character. The instructor will present the definitions of center of gravity, center of lateral area, and center of pressure. These definitions will provide students with the understanding of best placement of weight (fins) on their bottle rocket. The instructor will use student volunteers to test their center of mass. Students will be working in small groups and will participate in the activities to demonstrate how to determine an objects center of gravity mathematically and through measurement. Students will write a summary of their understanding of center of gravity and center of pressure. Using their summary, students will create a Voki character that they will share with their class through Edmodo. Students will be asked to respond to two of their classmates posts.Collaboration
English/Language Arts
Students will post responses to the songs from The Astronaut's Playlist, and respond to another student's post. Students will also write a response to another student's Animoto video. It is imperative that they use this collaborative approach to expand their own thinking regarding their videos and poems.Science
Students will work in groups to research, design, and build their rockets. Each group member must actively be involved in the construction of the project and must identify their contribution in the groups video presentation.Social Studies
Students will work with a partner on the assignment and share their work with the whole class on Diigo. They will each individually post their central idea to the Edmodo class page and respond to two other classmate's posts with constructive feedback.Math
Students will work in groups (preferably the groups that built the rocket) and will share their work with the class through Edmodo. They will post individually and will respond to two other classmate posts with constructive comments.ISTE NETS-T
Assessment
English/Language Arts
The Animoto videos will be the assessment for students. This will be their summative for the Rocket Day collaborative unit. The responses in Edmodo will serve as the formative assessment.Science
The actual design and construction of the rocket will serve as a formative assessment. The group video presentation posted on Edmodo and will be the summative assessment.Social Studies
The annotating on Diigo will be the formative assessment. The responses on Edmodo will be the summative assessment.Math
The participation in the completion of the labs will serve as a formative assessment. The Voki character and responses on Edmodo will serve as a summative assessment.Materials/Resources
All classes will be using Edmodo for submitting assignments and collaborating with their peers.
Websites:
English/Language Arts
The Astronaut's PlaylistThis website will be used as an activating activity. Students will use this website as a chance to peruse songs about space, noting how imagery, themes, and figurative language are used to create lyrics.
http://www.space.com/11037-space-music-playlist-astronauts-wakeup.html
Animoto
Students will use Animoto to create their summatives. They will use one line per slide, and include a picture to give effect to their poems.
www.animoto.com
Edmodo
Students will use Edmodo to post their responses regarding the song they choose on The Astronaut's Playlist. Their objective is to listen to a song, and note the use of space-related imagery in the song. They will post the song they chose and a 2-3 sentence blurb explaining how the author related the song to space.
www.edmodo.com
Mobile computer lab will also be needed.Science
2 liter bottle. (No other size)Stiff material for fins. (Cardboard, plastic, foam). No metal please!
Material for the nose cone. (Cardboard, plastic, foam). No metal please!
Parachutes are acceptable for the rocket design.
Duct tape only for the attachment of the rocket pieces.
Digital cameras
Mobile computer lab will be needed for
Social Studies
Students will use Edmodo to post their central ideas and support. http://www.edmodo.com/Classes/groups need to be set up on http://www.diigo.com/ and practice should be done beforehand with the students on how to use Diigo's features.
Mobile computer lab with Diigo tool bar installed on each computer.
News article on the future of the space program. http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2012/08/07/will-the-new-mars-rover-save-the-u-s-space-program/
The online article needs to be annotated for student use and shared with each student.
A post needs to be set up on Edmodo for students to post their central ideas and support.
Math
Students will use Voki to create a character to express their understanding of the concepts center of gravity and center of pressure.
Students will use Edmodo to post their link to a Voki creaton.
Mobile computer lab will be needed.
Value Beyond the Classroom
It is the intent of this unit for students to make a connection to all of the content areas. In their future careers, we hope students will understand the interconnectedness of content, noting how many jobs require a knowledge base that extends beyond a single subject. These jobs, especially those in the 21st Century, will require an understanding of physical and social science as well as literacy and mathematics. 21st Century jobs will demand that students have strong interpersonal skills. As they work collaboratively during the unit and respond to other students posts on Edmodo, students will build creative, communicative, and collaborative skills.
Lesson Development Resources/Citations
English/Language Arts
Animoto "How-To"-Poetry Starters
Copyright-Free Pictures
Science
Local physicist—Dr. Doug KnightConstruction Websites -
How to Build a Water Powered Bottle Rocket
How to Make a Water Bottle Rocket
Social Studies
Using Diigo in the Classroom -https://sites.google.com/site/team8project9440/using-diigo-in-the-classroom-2Diigo Education Edition - https://sites.google.com/site/team8project9440/using-diigo-in-the-classroom-2/using-diigo-in-the-classroom-1
Math
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/education/rocket/BottleRocket/educator.htmDetermining Center of Pressure – CP (simplified) - http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/rocket/rktcp.html
“The Chair and Push-up Test” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBn3s-BMbJs